Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW) has announced that this year’s Million Dollar Chase grand final - worth $1 million to the winner - will be run at Wentworth Park on Friday, October 13.
The Million Dollar Chase (MDC) is the world’s richest open entry greyhound race and the culmination of a series that will this year offer prizemoney of more than $2 million - with heats and qualifying finals spread across its heartland of regional tracks.
In announcing the October 13 MDC final date - which is the night before Racing NSW’s premier event, The Everest - GRNSW CEO Mr Rob Macaulay said participants and punters had indicated their preference for a September showcase in the NSW regions, leading into an October 13 final.
“We felt the time and circumstances were right to return to the original home of the race in October,” GRNSW Chief Executive Officer Rob Macaulay said.
“As it has with many events over the past few years, COVID-19 had an impact on the Million Dollar Chase, and as a result last year we staged two events, and we decided to see how the series would sit being run throughout August and September.
“The feedback we received from participants and stakeholders was that the series was better placed being run in September and October, and now with more certainty around scheduling of events, we decided it was an appropriate time to revert the Million Dollar Chase - the world’s richest greyhound series - to its former home in October.”
The return to a date in mid-October will see the Million Dollar Chase as the curtain raising event on what will be a major weekend of racing in Sydney with The Everest thoroughbred race held the following day at Randwick.
While the inaugural Million Dollar Chase in 2018 was held the week after The Everest, the Million Dollar Chase grand finals in 2019 and 2020 were both held on the Friday night before the Randwick race. In 2021 the race was postponed due to COVID-19 and run in May the following year, while the 2022 Chase was held in late September.
The series will continue in the same format it has had since its inception, with heats and finals being conducted around NSW at numerous regional tracks, with qualifiers heading to Wentworth Park for the semi-finals. The city venue will also host qualifying races, with eventually the eight semi-final winners advancing to the $1 million to the winner Grand Final on October 13.
Details of the regional heats and the full schedule will be released in coming weeks.
The Million Dollar Chase will be the exclamation mark on a huge year of racing in NSW highlighted by the Country Classic at Dubbo in March, The Ladbrokes 715 at The Gardens in May, and the Thunderbolt at Grafton in June - all the richest greyhound events in the world over their respective distances - as well as the time-honoured Group 1, the Ladbrokes Golden Easter Egg at Wentworth Park in April.
